EDITORIAL: White House tours more politics than cost saving

Despite promises from Candidate Obama, transparency hasn’t been President Obama’s strong suit since moving into the Oval Office – at least not until last week.

The decision to stop White House tours and blame it on sequestration spending cuts shines a bright light on the president’s intentions:

Politics.

No veil of secrecy on this message, ironically delivered with the arrival of Sunshine Week.

Closing the White House – the People’s House – comes just when kids across the country are out of school for spring break, headed to Washington in droves with parents interested enough in their education to give them a first-hand lesson in American government.

If this is not political shenanigans at its worst, what is?

Disappoint kids and take cover in blaming your opponents. It’s a setup for getting votes for your party well into the future.

The whole Doomsday outcry over sequestration cuts makes politicians appear completely out of touch with the rest of America.

Since the dawn of the Great Recession, what business hasn’t tightened its belt? What family hasn’t recalculated its spending?

For all the rhetoric about helping the “middle class,” there’s a total lack of understanding what most Americans have been up against for the past five-plus years.

And yet, our federal government cannot absorb enough reduction in its spending to keep the People’s House open for the people to visit.

Tell that to managers who have looked into the eyes of employees being laid off.

Tell that to the small business owner who gave up her own pay to cover her payroll.

Tell that to American workers who took a pay cut at the height of the recession and have yet to see that cut restored.

The White House estimates that tours will save the government $18,000 a week, mainly in the cost of Secret Service security.

Wow! That’s sure to whittle down the trillions in our federal debt.

Stack that savings up to the estimated cost of the Obamas’ New York City date night. According to an article in Forbes , the taxpayers’ bill for Secret Service, Marines, the presidential motorcade, helicopters and jets necessary for that romantic outing came to an estimated $1 million — enough to keep the White House open for tours for more than a year.

The use of Air Force One for the president’s trip to Las Vegas to deliver a policy speech?

At a cost of $180,000 an hour, enough to keep the White House tours going for a year and a half.

Flying back to D.C. in the midst of President Obama’s vacation?

Eliminating that Air Force One trip and the White House tours could continue for five years.

Page 2 of 2 - We’re not suggesting that the president’s protection isn’t of extreme importance, or that he should forgo time with his wife or stop taking vacations.

We’re simply borrowing these numbers from Forbes, a credible source, to point out the drop in the federal budget bucket that these White House tours make.

Eliminating tours of the White House – the People’s House – is an insult to the intelligence of Americans, even those who elected the president and support his policies.

About the only good thing we have to say about the decision is that it gives government transparency a whole new meaning.